2. The Dark Knight (2008)
After Batman Begins inadvertently became the yardstick by which all dark and gritty reboots are now measured, Christopher Nolan returned to Gotham City for an even darker and grittier take on the adventures of the Caped Crusader. It also happened to be a billion dollar smash hit, one of the best movies of the year (that was unfairly overlooked by the Academy in most major categories), one of the greatest sequels ever made, and arguably the pinnacle of the superhero genre as a whole. Despite being carried by an utterly mesmerizing, instantly-iconic and deservedly Oscar-winning turn from the late Heath Ledger as arch-nemesis The Joker, The Dark Knight is much more than just a one man show. Across the board, the cast are nothing short of fantastic; Christian Bale's understated performance conveys the fractured psyche and dual personalities of Bruce Wayne and Batman, Aaron Eckhart's tragic demise from savior to villain anchors the narrative, while Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine provide the heart of the movie. Even Maggie Gyllenhall makes an impression in a somewhat underwritten role. Besides the acting, the bank heist is one of cinema's all-time great opening scenes, while the city-wide vehicle chase is a stunning example of why practical effects are often better than CGI. Technically, the writing, direction, cinematography and production design are all first-class, elevating the movie above Hollywood's standard generic superhero fare. Despite a relatively shaky third act (compared to the rest of the movie at least), The Dark Knight is fully deserving of its status as a modern classic of any genre. Although many analysts claim the demise of Heath Ledger created a morbid fascination with The Dark Knight that boosted box office takings, that's a hugely unfair statement. Although Batman Begins grossed less than $375m worldwide, the movie accrued a huge following on DVD that increased audience awareness for the sequel, as well as the obvious fact that Batman has always been one of pop culture's most recognizable figures. Still, it came as a surprise when The Dark Knight set a new opening weekend record with a domestic bow of $158.4m, and held incredibly well throughout the summer to become only the second movie in history to cross $500m domestically. Finally, a full seven months after its release, it became only the fourth movie to join the billion dollar club, squeaking past the mark with a total gross of $1.004bn. Interestingly, it is the only billion dollar movie in history that has seen less than 50% of its takings come from overseas markets.